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Remembering Ricky
A mother whose son suffered a brain haemorrhage while playing rugby and later died has spoken for the first time about her loss and why an award might be created in her son's name.
He was known to his friends simply as 'Smiler'. Ricky Nugent died suddenly in September last year after suffering a brain haemorrhage. He was only 16 years old, and his untimely death left a community in shock.
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His funeral was attended by hundreds of people, many of them his teenage friends. Five months after his death, people are still leaving messages on his Facebook and Gone Too Soon website.
Now, Ricky's mother, Anne Cameron, has spoken about her loss and told how she is still coming to terms with the death of her son.
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Ricky was a keen rugby league player – he had played for West Leeds ARLFC for six years prior to his death – and it was during a game against Shaw Cross Sharks that he was taken ill.
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Mrs Cameron, who lives with husband Allistair, 46, Ricky's step-dad, said: "I got a phone call at home. At first, I thought he had been injured. The person who phoned me said they had had to bring him off. Then she asked me if he had ever had any fits before.
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"We were not there that Sunday because Allistair was working, but we soon got there. When we arrived, he was still sitting up but he was not himself. I knew something was wrong in the ambulance because he didn't move. Not even to open his eyes.
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"When we got to the hospital, no-one seemed to know what it was. He had an MRI scan and they sent the pictures to LGI. The message came back that there was no point in even sending him, although they did in the end.
"He had suffered an aneurism but it was at the base of his brainstem and had flooded his brain with blood. There was nothing they could do.
"I was there when they turned the machine off. His breathing kept stopping and starting. I said, 'he's a bugger, he won't give in.' Then he breathed his last breath and that was it. We all knew it. He was a fighter right to the end."
One thing which has helped Anne and Allistair come to terms with Ricky's death has been collecting and preserving toys and objects from his childhood.
"I have a Fisher Price Adventure Castle in his room, it was his favourite toy for years. He used to play with it every night in the bath and I would have to turn it upside down to drain off because I knew it would be the first thing he played with again in the morning.
"We've also framed one of his rugby shirts and it's hung over his bed in his bedroom.
She added: "Until two weeks ago, it hadn't really hit me. Then I had a breakdown. I'd been busy until then. We received over 200 cards from well-wishers and I am still in the process of replying to them. It's a long job.
"You are on auto-pilot at first. But a couple of weeks ago, it sank in. I asked myself how did I let those doctors tell me there was nothing they could do for my son? How did I take all that finality on board?
"I had two choices, sink or swim. I think I'm swimming."
Ricky's former school, Farnley Park High, is now considering dedicating an award for merit in Ricky's name.
Mrs Cameron said: "He was one of those kids who was always the centre of attention. I say he didn't like school that much but he got his head down in the last year. Something in him changed and he decided to work hard. He was determined he was going to do something.
“He managed to get a grade C in maths, which his teachers were thrilled about. No-one had expected him to get that. Then he got on an electrical installation course at Park Lane College.”
“I’d be delighted if they set up an award in his name. It would mean so much to us and his memory.”
neil.hudson@ypn.co.uk
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Sunday 12 February 2012
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